Percy Gray

[4] From there he went on to become an assistant to a stockbroker and a quick-sketch illustrator for the San Francisco Morning Call before obtaining a job with the New York Journal.

He was dispatched from New York to cover the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, but decided to remain in his native city where he would then take up his painting career.

[6] Gray “first rose to prominence” through the sketches he made for the Henry K. Thaw murder trial which were sensationally reproduced in all the Hearst newspapers.

[7] From 1907 to 1914 his exhibited works at the San Francisco Art Association were primarily scenes of Berkeley and Alameda oaks, marshes, eucalyptus groves, seascapes, and fields of California wildflowers.

One critic, evaluating Gray's use of material and watercolor technique, stated that "the watercolors that fall into Gray's somewhat Tonalist period, beginning after his return to the West Coast in 1906, mark a masterful level of achievement with brush and wash," citing his 1909 "Trees on a Hillside," which "has a liquid feel to its execution.

[3] In 1970, the California Historical Society of San Francisco organized a significant retrospective exhibition showcasing Gray's artistic oeuvre.

The Carmel Art Association (CAA) also supported a dedicated solo exhibition showcasing his paintings and graphic artwork in 1998.

Impressively, despite the dynamic shifts in artistic preferences within the market, Gray's landscapes have continued to enjoy widespread popularity well into the 21st century.